Massachusetts man convicted of murdering his wife and children denied parole

BOSTON – The Massachusetts Parole Board has unanimously denied parole to a Massachusetts man serving life in prison after being convicted of murdering his wife and children.

According to the Board, on February 4, 1993, after a jury trial in Middlesex Superior Court, Kenneth Seguin was convicted of three counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of his wife, Mary Ann (known as Polly), and their two children, Danny (age 7), and Amy (age 5). He was sentenced to serve life in prison with the possibility of parole for the murder of his wife, followed by two concurrent life sentences with the possibility of parole for the murder of his children.

On the evening of April 28, 1992, while Polly was out (and just a few days after moving to a new residence in Holliston), Seguin drugged his children with sleeping pills and drove them to a deserted pond in Franklin. He then murdered them, concealing their bodies in the murky waters of the pond. Seguin later drove home to Holliston and bludgeoned Polly to death in their bed. Polly’s body, clothed only in a nightshirt, was discovered the next morning floating in the Sudbury River in Southborough. She had suffered a gaping wound to her left temple, and a subsequent autopsy revealed that the cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head. After her body was discovered, police questioned Seguin, who claimed that two men had broken into his home and attacked him and bashed Polly over the head with an axe. He told authorities that the intruders had given the children sleeping pills, and that they had been in their beds.

Police discovered the children’s bodies on May 2, 1992, at Beaver Pond in Franklin. Danny’s body was submerged under the water. Seguin had piled leaves, sticks, debris, and muck from the bottom of the pond on top of his body. Seguin slashed Danny’s throat with a razor, slicing him from each earlobe to his Adam’s apple. Amy’s body was discovered not far from Danny’s. Again, Seguin used debris from the area to conceal her body, forcing her head into the muck at the bottom of the pond, so that only her sneakers were visible. Seguin slashed both of her wrists and severely injured her arms. Autopsies revealed traces of sleeping pills in their systems. Subsequent police investigation revealed that Seguin had attempted to cover up the murders by flipping over the blood-stained mattress from the bed (where he killed Polly) and covering it with a quilt. He also made anonymous calls to the children’s schools the next morning, informing school authorities that neither child would be present that day.

Seguin, now 65-years-old, appeared before the Parole Board for a review hearing. Seguin had been denied parole after his initial hearing in 2007, and after his review hearings in 2012 and 2017. The Board stated that on his opening statement to the Board, Seguin expressed his remorse for the murder of his family and acknowledged the impact of his actions on the extended family. He stated that he should have sought professional help for his depression and repressed anger.

When the Board questioned him as to his mindset at the time of the murders, Seguin accepted responsibility for his conduct and reported that he had a great deal of anger towards himself at the time. He stated that he had experienced significant stressors, including depression and friction in his marriage. He also felt unsure and inadequate at work. When Board Members asked why seemingly ordinary stressors contributed towards such heinous actions, Seguin replied that his internal shame and sense of failure was so great that he felt he could not face the next day. Seguin reported his reliance on a twisted altruistic belief that he should “stop the suffering in this life” and facilitate the whole family’s entrance to heaven. He was unable to separate himself from his family and, if he could not live, then neither could his family. Seguin claimed that he first considered murdering his family on the evening of the crime but could not provide any further insight into why.

Seguin has held several positions within the institution, but he has been terminated from several roles due to theft. At the time of the hearing, Seguin was employed as a runner in his unit. The Board questioned Sequin about two recent issues in 2017, for lying to staff and another issue in 2021, for violating a departmental rule. Seguin characterized the first report as simply a communication error, rather than an overt attempt at deception. As to the second report, Seguin was cited for saving documents on a law clerk library computer that were unrelated to official use. Seguin, however, claimed that he had been previously permitted to save documents in such a manner.

The Board ruled that Seguin has not demonstrated a level of rehabilitative progress that would make his release compatible with the welfare of society. The Board noted the brutal and planful nature of the crime and that he has incurred disciplinary infractions in recent years, including in October 2021 and April 2017.

Seguin’s next appearance before the Board will take place in three years.